Attorney General James Helps Shut Down Purdue Pharma, Secures $4.5 Billion from Sackler Family for Role in Fueling Opioid Crisis

 

Resolution Shuts Down Purdue, Ends Sacklers’ Ability to Sell Opioids Ever Again, and Secures Unprecedented Public Disclosure

 New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced a resolution of her lawsuit against the Sackler family and their company, Purdue Pharma, for their role in fueling the opioid crisis. The agreement will, first and foremost, shut down Purdue Pharma and end the Sackler family’s ability to manufacture opioids ever again. The agreement will also deliver one of the largest payments that individuals and entities they control have paid to resolve a law enforcement action in U.S. history — more than $4.5 billion will be paid to fund prevention, treatment, and recovery programs in communities across the country. Additionally, the agreement will make public tens of millions of documents related to the company and the family’s roles in igniting the opioid crisis — requiring unprecedented disclosure about the role Purdue and the Sacklers played in hooking Americans on opioids.

“For nearly two years, since Purdue Pharma declared bankruptcy, the company and the Sackler family have used every delay tactic possible and misused the courts — all in an effort to shield their misconduct,” said Attorney General James. “While this deal is not perfect, we are delivering $4.5 billion into communities ravaged by opioids on an accelerated timetable and it gets one of the nation’s most harmful drug dealers out of the opioid business, once and for all. We’ll be able to more quickly invest these funds in prevention, education, and treatment programs, and put an end to the delays and legal maneuvering that could possibly continue for years and across multiple continents. While no amount of money will ever compensate for the thousands who lost their lives or became addicted to opioids across our state or provide solace to the countless families torn apart by this crisis, these funds will be used to prevent any future devastation.”

The resolution of the lawsuit — which was filed in bankruptcy court late last night and is subject to approval — requires the Sacklers to pay $4.325 billion over the next nine years, with New York state expected to receive at least $200 million, and possibly more, for abatement of the opioid epidemic. Thousands of individual victims of Purdue’s misconduct will also receive compensation as part of the bankruptcy process. Additionally, the resolution requires the Sacklers to relinquish control of family foundations — which will hold no less than $175 million in assets — to the trustees of a contemplated National Opioid Abatement Trust dedicated to abating the opioid crisis, thus increasing the total being delivered to communities nationwide to more than $4.5 billion. Further, the Sackler family will be prohibited from requesting or permitting any new naming rights in connection with charitable or similar donations or organizations for the next nine years.

Moreover, the resolution shines a spotlight on the activities of Purdue and the Sacklers by making public more than 30 million documents, including privileged communications about the original Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of OxyContin, as well as all documents relating to the manufacturing, sale, or marketing of opioids in the United States. Purdue will also waive its attorney-client privilege to reveal confidential communications with its lawyers about tactics used for pushing opioids, “pill mill” doctors and pharmacies diverting drugs, and about the billions of dollars Purdue paid out to the Sacklers. Specifically, Purdue will turn over for public disclosure the evidence from lawsuits and investigations of Purdue over the past 20 years, including deposition transcripts, deposition videos, and 13 million documents. Purdue will also be required to turn over more than 20 million additional documents, including every non-privileged email at Purdue that was sent or received by every member of the Sackler family who sat on the Board or worked at the company.

In March 2019, Attorney General James filed the nation’s most extensive lawsuit to hold accountable the various manufacturers and distributors responsible for the opioid crisis. The manufacturers named in the complaint included Purdue Pharma and its affiliates; members of the Sackler Family and trusts they control; Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its affiliates (including its parent company Johnson & Johnson); Mallinckrodt LLC and its affiliates; Endo Health Solutions and its affiliates; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. and its affiliates; and Allergan Finance, LLC and its affiliates. The distributors named in the complaint are McKesson Corporation, Cardinal Health Inc., Amerisource Bergen Drug Corporation, and Rochester Drug Cooperative Inc.

The cases against Mallinckrodt and Rochester Drug Cooperative are now in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. A settlement that ended Johnson & Johnson’s sale of opioids nationwide and delivered $230 million to New York alone was announced less than two weeks ago. The trial against all other defendants is currently underway.

Separately, earlier this year, in February, Attorney General James co-led a coalition of nearly every attorney general in the nation in delivering more than $573 million — more than $32 million of which was earmarked for New York state — toward opioid treatment and abatement in an agreement and consent judgment with McKinsey & Company.

Senator Alessandra Biaggi’s District Office Reopening - Later in the Summer

 

 

Dear Community,

I hope you all are well and staying safe. I am writing today with an update regarding our District Office in the Bronx. As you know, our District Office located in Riverdale has been closed to staff and constituents for over a year as a matter of precaution due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 2020, our Constituent Services team has been working diligently to safely help constituents and sustain our office responsibilities remotely. 

As our communities reopen and more New Yorkers receive the COVID-19 vaccine, my office is eager to reopen our office safely during the next few months. Starting the week of July 12th, staff will be returning to the District Office on a rotating basis. In-person constituent services will begin later in the summer by appointment only. We will be sure to alert the community with more information once in-person appointments may be scheduled. 

The safety and health of constituents and my staff remains my top priority, especially as reports of the delta variant in New York emerge. My office and I will continue to monitor the spread of COVID-19 within the community and make any necessary changes to our office opening timeline as we see fit. 

If you have any questions or are a District 34 constituent currently in need of services from my office, please contact us at 718-822-2049 or email us at biaggi@nysenate.gov. 

With Gratitude,

​

State Senator Alessandra Biaggi

Attorney General James Files Second Antitrust Lawsuit in Six Months to End Google’s Illegal Monopolies

 

AG James Co-Leads Bipartisan Coalition of 37 AGs in Alleging Google Illegally Maintains App Store Monopolies, Unfairly Edges Out Competition

 New York Attorney General Letitia James today continued her work fighting for New York’s consumers and small businesses by co-leading a bipartisan coalition of 37 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against Google LLC for its illegal and anticompetitive conduct that has sought to maintain the company’s monopoly power in the mobile app distribution and in-app payment processing markets. Through a series of exclusionary contracts and other anticompetitive conduct in the Google Play Store, Google has deprived Android device users of robust competition that could lead to greater choice and innovation, as well as significantly lower prices for mobile apps. Attorney General James and the coalition — co-led by the attorneys general of Utah, North Carolina, and Tennessee — also accuse Google of requiring app developers selling in-app digital content through apps purchased via Google’s Play Store to use Google Billing as a middleman, forcing app consumers to pay Google’s commission — up to 30 percent — indefinitely.

“Google has served as the gatekeeper of the internet for many years, but, more recently, it has also become the gatekeeper of our digital devices — resulting in all of us paying more for the software we use every day,” said Attorney General James. “Once again, we are seeing Google use its dominance to illegally quash competition and profit to the tune of billions. Through its illegal conduct, the company has ensured that hundreds of millions of Android users turn to Google, and only Google, for the millions of applications they may choose to download to their phones and tablets. Worse yet, Google is squeezing the lifeblood out of millions of small businesses that are only seeking to compete. We are filing this lawsuit to end Google’s illegal monopoly power and finally give voice to millions of consumers and business owners.”

Google Closed the Android App Distribution Ecosystem to Competitors

Google launched its Android Operating System (OS), originally marketing it as an “open source” platform. By promising to keep Android open, Google successfully enticed original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) — such as Samsung — and mobile network operators (MNOs) — such as Verizon — to adopt Android, and, more importantly, to forgo developing their own app stores to compete with Google’s Play Store. Once Google obtained a “critical mass” of Android OS adoption by app developers and users, Google moved to close the Android OS ecosystem — and the relevant Android App Distribution Market — to any effective competition by, among other things, requiring OEMs and MNOs to enter into various exclusive contracts and other restraints. These contractual restraints not only disincentivize, but restrict OEMs and MNOs from competing, or fostering competition, in the relevant market. Today’s lawsuit alleges that Google’s conduct constitutes unlawful monopoly maintenance, among other claims.

In aid of Google’s efforts, Attorney General James and the coalition further allege that Google engaged in the following conduct, all aimed at enhancing and protecting its monopoly position over Android app distribution:

• Google imposes technical barriers that strongly discourage or completely prevent third-party app developers from distributing apps outside the Google Play Store. Specifically, Google builds into Android a series of misleading security warnings and other barriers that discourage users from downloading apps from any source outside Google’s Play Store, effectively foreclosing app developers and app stores from direct distribution to consumers.
  
  
• Google has not allowed Android to serve as an “open source” for many years, effectively cutting off potential competition. Google forces OEMs that wish to design their devices to use Android to enter into agreements called “Android Compatibility Commitments” or ACCs. Under these “take it or leave it” agreements, OEMs must promise not to create or implement any variants or versions of Android that deviate from the Google-certified version of Android.
  
  
• Google’s required contracts foreclose competition by forcing Google’s proprietary apps to be “pre-loaded” on essentially all devices designed to run on the Android OS, and requires that Google’s apps be given the most prominent placement on devices’ home screens.
  
  
• Google “buys off” its potential competition in the market for app distribution. Google has successfully persuaded OEMs and MNOs not to compete with Google’s Play Store by entering into arrangements that reward OEMs and MNOs with a share of Google’s monopoly profits.
  
  
• Google forces app developers and app users alike to use Google’s payment processing service — Google Play Billing — to process any payments for purchases of digital content made in apps obtained through the Google Play Store. Thus, Google is unlawfully tying the use of Google’s payment processor — which is a separate service within a separate market for payment processing within apps — to distribution through the Google Play Store. By forcing this tie, Google is able to extract an exorbitant processing fee for each transaction, as high as 30 percent, and many times higher than payment processing fees charged in competitive markets.

The coalition claims that Google’s conduct violates Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act; New York’s Donnelly Act; and a number of New York’s consumer protection laws, including Executive Law 63(12) and General Business Law § 349, as well as various other states’ antitrust and consumer protection laws. The coalition requests that the court halt Google’s illegal conduct and restore a competitive marketplace. The states also seek to obtain redress for consumers through treble damages and disgorgement for unjust profits, in addition to civil penalties.

Attorney General James co-leads today’s lawsuit against Google after similarly co-leading a separate antitrust lawsuit against Google last December. Attorney General James co-led a bipartisan coalition of 38 attorneys general in suing Google for its illegal, anticompetitive conduct that has sought to maintain the company's monopoly power in the general search services and search advertising markets.

Joining Attorney General James in co-leading the coalition in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Utah, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The four attorneys general are joined by the attorneys general of Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.

178 Days and Counting

 

In six months you will be saying, why didn't Mayor de Blasio run for a third term, and you will miss me, because Eric Adams will be changing what I had put in place. Those jails next to where you live, and the homeless shelters that ruin your communities, he will have none of that. Mayor Adams will have the police working again, not like under my administration where I tied their hands and said they can't do anything but say thank you.

If you think your schools are going to get any better, my administration screwed up the Department of Education leaving those poor Bronx public school students way behind the other four boroughs in student performance. Some of the buildings that are used for Bronx Public schools are over one hundred years old. The Bronx was the forgotten borough under my administration. Let's see what Mayor Adams is going to do since his support came mostly from Brooklyn and the Bronx, 

Bronx Night Market - TRULY: THE HARD SELTZER OF THE MARKET

 

Defendant Arrested For Selling Xanax, Heroin, And Fentanyl Causing The Death Of A 20-Year-Old Woman

 

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Dermot Shea, the Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced that LUIS LEE was charged in a criminal complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal court with narcotics distribution resulting in the death of Pathjrie Roman, who died two days before her 21st birthday.  LEE was arrested today and will be presented this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge James L. Cott. 

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “As alleged, Luis Lee peddled a lethal combination of drugs that caused the death of Pathjrie Roman.  Working with the NYPD, we will continue to combat the epidemic of lethal opioids.”

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said: “The NYPD continues to work to end the trafficking of illegal opioids and bring to justice those who profit from their distribution. We commend and thank the detectives and the attorneys of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District whose hard work resulted in this arrest.”

As alleged in the Complaint[1]:

On or about September 18, 2020, Pathjrie Roman contacted LEE on Instagram and asked for Xanax and a depressant, or a “downer,” of which heroin is a type.  That evening, LEE met Roman outside her apartment in the Bronx and delivered the Xanax and heroin.  The heroin, however, was mixed with fentanyl.  LEE’s meeting with Roman was corroborated by their contemporaneous Instagram messages, by LEE’s cellphone location, by building surveillance, and by witness information. 

The next day, September 19, 2020, NYPD and emergency medical personnel found Roman deceased at her apartment.  Following an autopsy, the New York City Medical Examiner determined that Roman died of acute intoxication from the combined effects of fentanyl, acetyl fentanyl, heroin, and alprazolam (generic Xanax).  Hidden inside Roman’s phone case were four glassines containing residue of fentanyl, acetyl fentanyl, and heroin. 

On or about September 20, 2020, another Instagram user told LEE that Roman had died.  Within 24 hours, LEE deleted the Instagram account that he had used to communicate with Roman. 

On or about November 11, 2020, NYPD personnel executed a search of LEE’s bedroom and recovered 12 glassines matching the appearance of the glassines inside Roman’s phone case.  The glassines in LEE’s bedroom contained fentanyl. 

LUIS LEE, 26, of New York, New York, is charged with narcotics distribution resulting in death, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.   

The minimum and maximum potential sentences described above are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the assigned judge.

Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of the NYPD.  

The charge against the defendant is merely an accusation, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint, and the description of the Complaint set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described herein should be treated as an allegation as to the defendants charged in the Complaint.

DiNAPOLI RELEASES BOND CALENDAR FOR THIRD QUARTER

 

Tentative Schedule Includes $6.75 Billion of New Money and Refunding Debt Sales

 

 New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced a tentative schedule for the planned bond sales for New York State, New York City and their major public authorities during the third quarter of 2021.

The planned sales of $6.75 billion include $4.25 billion of new money and $2.5 billion of refundings and reofferings as follows:

• $3.2 billion scheduled for July, of which $1.96 billion is for new money and $1.24 billion for refunding purposes;
• $3.49 billion scheduled for August, of which $2.23 billion is for new money purposes and $1.26 billion is for refunding or reoffering purposes; and
• $65 million scheduled for September, which is for new money purposes.

The anticipated sales in the third quarter compare to past planned sales of $2.45 billion during the second quarter of 2021, and $5.08 billion during the third quarter of 2020.

The State Comptroller’s office chairs the Securities Coordinating Committee, which was created by Gubernatorial Executive Order primarily to coordinate the borrowing activities of the state, New York City and their respective public authorities. All borrowings are scheduled at the request of the issuer and done pursuant to their borrowing programs.

A new schedule is released every quarter and updated as necessary. The schedule is released by the committee to assist participants in the municipal bond market. It is contingent upon execution of all project approvals required by law. The collection and release of this information by the Office of the State Comptroller is not intended as an endorsement of the proposed issuances it contains, many of which will be subject to approval by the Office of the State Comptroller.

The prospective second quarter calendar includes anticipated bond sales by the following issuers: the City of New York, the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, the New York City Transitional Finance Authority, the New York State Thruway Authority, and the State of New York Mortgage Agency.

Calendar:

Securities Coordinating Committee (SCC) Forward Issuance Bond Calendar

Leader Of “Mike’s Candyshop” Drug Delivery Service Pleads Guilty To Narcotics Distribution That Resulted In The 2018 Death Of Colin Kroll

 

 Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ARIEL TAVAREZ, a/k/a “A,” a/k/a “Mike,” pled guilty today in Manhattan federal court to conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue, and to distributing narcotics that caused the 2018 death of Colin Kroll, the co-founder of the video hosting service Vine and the trivia game application HQ Trivia.  TAVAREZ pled guilty before United States District Judge Katherine Polk Failla. 

U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “For years, Ariel Tavarez operated a covert on-demand delivery service for the distribution of highly addictive and dangerous drugs.  Tavarez and his underlings peddled their poison, which Tavarez sometimes secretly laced with deadly synthetic opioids, throughout New York City.  Thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, Mike’s Candyshop is permanently closed.”           

According to the allegations in the Indictment, and statements made in Court:

TAVAREZ was the leader of a drug trafficking organization (the “DTO”) that engaged in a drug delivery service, which identified itself as “Mike’s Candyshop.”  The DTO delivered heroin and cocaine (sometimes laced with fentanyl and a fentanyl analogue) on demand to customers in New York City, and distributed numerous kilograms of heroin and cocaine throughout the course of the conspiracy.  Mike’s Candyshop generally operated seven days per week, from approximately 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., with the exception of major holidays such as Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, and Labor Day. 

Customers of the DTO placed delivery orders via text message to a centralized phone number (the “Candyshop Number”).  The operator of the Candyshop Number was usually TAVAREZ.  Using the Candyshop Number, TAVAREZ accepted customer orders and subsequently arranged for a courier working for the DTO to deliver the narcotics to the customer, usually within hours of the customer texting his or her order to the Candyshop Number.  Certain of the DTO members, including Christian Baez, Luis Meson, a/k/a “Sito,” Gregoris Martinez, a/k/a “Greg,” Kevin Grullon, a/k/a “Kev,” a/k/a “JB,” and Jeffrey Urena, a/k/a “Jeff,” a/k/a “Jay,” served as couriers for the DTO, and regularly delivered and sold narcotics to the DTO’s customers in hand-to-hand drug transactions coordinated through the Candyshop Number. 

The DTO stored heroin, cocaine, a fentanyl analogue, and cash from drug sales in various stash locations maintained by the DTO, including in Brooklyn, New York.  In an effort to avoid law enforcement detection, the DTO sold only to customers who had been referred by existing customers, periodically changed the Candyshop Number, used coded language to discuss narcotics, and delivered narcotics directly to customers at locations specified by the customer.  As a means of marketing its cocaine, and to ensure that the DTO’s customers knew the cocaine provided by the couriers belonged to the DTO, the DTO sold its cocaine in vials sealed with different colored tops. 

On or about December 16, 2018, Colin Kroll, a customer of the DTO, died of a drug overdose in New York, New York.  The narcotics that caused Kroll’s death – cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue – were purchased from Mike’s Candyshop on the evening of December 14, 2018. 

TAVAREZ pled guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue, the use of which resulted in the death of Colin Kroll on or about December 16, 2018.  This count carries a statutory mandatory minimum term of 20 years in prison and maximum penalty of life in prison.  The maximum and mandatory minimum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.

TAVAREZ is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Failla on November 23, 2021.           

Baez, Meson, Martinez, Grullon, and Urena each previously entered a plea of guilty to participating in the Mike’s Candyshop narcotics trafficking conspiracy.  Martinez was sentenced on June 29, 2021, to 72 months in prison by Judge Failla.  Baez, Meson, Grullon, and Urena will be sentenced later this year by Judge Failla.

Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the New York City Police Department, and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.  This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.